"He was carrying an Indian passport. Do spies carry passports?" the home minister asked, seeking to trash Islamabad's claim that the 46-year-old was involved in "espionage and sabotage activities".
Contradicting Asif's claim, the office of the Afghan National Security Adviser Mohammad Haneef Atmar issued a statement saying there was no mention or reference of India or an Indian citizen during his meeting with the Pakistani foreign minister on September 21 in New York.
After Air India, Britain's Cairn Energy PLC plans to target assets of state-owned firms and banks in countries from the US to Singapore as it looks to ramp up efforts to recover the amount due from the Indian government after winning an arbitration against levy of retrospective taxes. A lawyer representing the company said Cairn will bring lawsuits in several countries to make state-owned firms liable to pay the $1.2 billion plus interest and penalties that are due from the Indian government. Last month, Cairn brought a lawsuit in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York pleading that Air India is controlled by the Indian government so much that they are 'alter egos' and the airline should be held liable for the arbitration award.
The Pune-based two- and three-wheeler maker will roll out the 150-cc bike, christened 'V', on February 1
Chinese President Xi Jinping has stressed the need for the recruitment of new talent to support the rapid modernisation of the armed forces and win future wars amid reports that the military has committed more resources to enrol 3 lakh personnel for frontline positions.
The RSS chief's comment that if war broke out, the military would not be ready for at least six to seven months is correct as it faces a shortfall in training and alertness and an even greater lack of funds for defence preparedness, notes Ajai Shukla.
A hand-written memo in which United States President Barack Obama authorised the Navy SEALs team to "go in and get (Osama) bin Laden" at his hideout in Pakistan one year ago has been made public.
The Lahore High Court Bar Association said on Friday that it will take action against any lawyer who extends his services to Jadhav.
'Employment of dedicated lightweight special forces aircraft may provide the answer for repeat anti-terror air strikes with surprise elements intact, the cost benefit assured and attrition minimal,' says Group Captain Murli Menon (retd), India's former air adviser in Pakistan.
Containing infiltration of terrorists into Jammu and Kashmir from Pakistan will be another key focus area.
Here are five important points the International Court of Justice made while delivering its verdict and staying execution of former Indian Navy officer Kulbhushan Jadhav.
"Numerous rounds of talks have taken place with the Chinese counterparts to deescalate the situation without compromising on India's stand of 'complete disengagement and immediate restoration of status quo ante'," the defence ministry said.
The tearing hurry to form theatre commands has to be replaced by a balanced and deliberate approach. We need to accept that this process will take time if executed correctly and in the best interests of the Indian armed forces, argues Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).
Police and paramilitary security forces, including sharpshooters, have been deployed at the MOFA to deal with any untoward security situation, they said.
The Border Security Force has submitted a preliminary report on presence of Chinese troops in Pakistan's forward defence locations for imparting training of weapons handling, Lok Sabha was told on Tuesday.
'If the series of instances in the recent past are taken into account -- guns falling silent on the border; vastly reduced cross-border infiltration into J&K; positive approach to meeting Indian demands on the Kartarpur Sahib pilgrimage; resumption of overflight for Indian aircraft; visible disinterest in rhetoric and so on -- Commander Jadhav may see better days in a conceivable future,' notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Rubbishing Pakistan's claim of a victory in the case, External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said Islamabad has its 'own compulsions to lie' to its people.
'Kangana Ranaut is not only the Sena's issue, but also of those who love Mumbai and Maharashtra'
The ministry's year-end review is silent on the continued occupation by Chinese troops of territory that India has always claimed and patrolled.
The clinical precision with which the US Navy SEALs organised the 'kill Osama bin Laden' operation inside Pakistan has once again brought to fore the capabilities of this highly trained special military unit. But they, despite being one of the best, are not the only ones.
'Ladakh is a tiny salami-slice issue.' 'The big one for China is Arunachal Pradesh, more than 83,000 sq km.' 'Do they imagine they can grab any of this by force?' 'In the 21st century, nursing those thoughts only means you need to get your heads examined.' 'It isn't going to happen,' declares Shekhar Gupta.
'Quiet back channel advice will probably be rendered by Saudi Arabia to India that international perception on both issues does not favour India and that it should be prudent to look inwards and introspect on where the failing has been,' notes Lieutenant General Syed Ata Hasnain (retd).
"India has no knowledge of Kulbhushan Jadhav's location and his condition. We are making all efforts to get him back but we can't reveal the steps that will be taken to achieve it," the MEA said.
India on Monday successfully test-fired the 290 km-range BrahMos supersonic anti-ship cruise missile from the country's largest indigenous warship INS Kolkata off the coast of Karwar in Karnataka.
He suggested that the new structures will emerge within one year's time.
Rejecting India's stand that Jadhav was kidnapped from Iran, Basit said he was caught in Balochistan and tried for 'espionage and sabotage'.
Pak's Foreign Secretary Aizaz Chaudhry said that Modi's statement shows India's nervousness over the situation in Kashmir.
The external affairs ministry said Pakistan has also been asked not to subject the two women to any questioning, harassment or interrogation during their stay in Pakistan.
'We are facing the most critical military situation with China in the last 50 years.'
Bolstering his hunch, Defence Secretary Leon Panetta, who headed the Central Intelligence Agency at the time when US Navy SEALs killed bin Laden in Pakistan's Abbottabad town, said there were intelligence reports of Pakistani military helicopters passing over the compound where the Al Qaeda chief was hiding.
He has Biden's ear and because of the past relationship, Biden will actually listen to him, unlike some past residents of Roosevelt House.
Pakistan today said India's bid at the UN to ban Masood Azhar was "politically motivated" and "replete with frivolous information", two days after its close ally China blocked the proposal to get the JeM chief and Pathankot attack mastermind listed as a global terrorist.
Senior analyst B Raman explains the real motive behind the daring terrorist strike on a Pakistan military base in Karachi.
He said that if there are issues that need to be talked about, it is between India and Pakistan.
'The COVID-19 pandemic must push the military into a long-term reconsideration of its primary challenges.' 'There must be greater emphasis on humanitarian aid and disaster relief including the management of contagious illnesses and impending crises caused by climate change,' notes Ajai Shukla.
The most nail biting moment in the Abbottabad raid that killed former Al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden came when the helicopters carrying the Navy Seals left Afghan airspace to enter Pakistan's territory, United States Defence Secretary Leon Panetta has said.
India maintained thatthe well being and state of Jadhav's health is a "matter of great concern" to it.
New Delhi remains a priggish suitor to Washington's overtures, but it has begun appreciating potential tech benefits to ties with the US.
The Indian man, who has not been identified, was arrested from F-8 area of Islamabad for not having complete travel documents.
This is the meatiest role of Sidharth Malhotra's career and the man sure enough gives it his all. There's charm, swagger, warmth, empathy, verve, authority -- a lively portrait of a lion, a legend, applauds Sukanya Verma.
